Hey --
We are facing an affordable housing crisis.
Eleven million Americans spend more than half their paycheck on rent. Nearly two-thirds of renters nationwide say they can’t afford to buy a home. And with housing prices rising at twice the rate of wage growth, the crisis is likely only going to get worse.
But so far, the presidential candidate debates have failed to include a question about this important issue. That needs to change. Join me in calling on ABC News and Univision to include a question on affordable housing during Thursday’s debate.
This issue is personal for me.
When I was a little kid, my family lived in a rented apartment in Schenectady. We were working class. Everything we had, we earned. Mom and dad both worked for General Electric. Those jobs at GE were good jobs -- the kind you don't see enough of these days.
Over the years, I watched mom and dad lift us up into the middle class. By the time I was in high school, they bought a plot of land and on it, they built a new home that they owned.
Homeownership is central to the American Dream because it helps foster upward mobility. When you own a home, you generate equity -- savings for your retirement or for your kid’s college. If you don’t, it’s harder to improve your condition and your child's condition.
In Upstate New York, I’ve been holding roundtable discussions on affordable housing in Hudson and Kingston, listening to residents who desperately want to be able to buy a home or afford the home they are in.
In Congress, I’m fighting to lower housing costs by co-sponsoring the Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act of 2019, which would add 1.9 million units of affordable housing nationwide and create tens of thousands of jobs over the next decade.
Many of the 2020 presidential candidates have released plans to address the crisis -- so we just need the debate moderators to ask them a question on affordable housing for the public to know more about them. Add your name to the petition.
Thank you,
Antonio Delgado
